Hot Topics:

Bill to divert spaceport money for schools reaches House floor

By Walter Rubel / wrubel@lcsun-news.com @WalterRubel on Twitter

Posted:
02/06/2014 03:25:28 PM MST

LAS CRUCES >> A House bill that would return to the state 75 percent of spaceport tax funds now going to local schools cleared its final House committee Wednesday night, over the strenuous objections of two local lawmakers.

House bill 13, sponsored by Rep. Sheryl Williams Stapleton, D-Albuquerque, is now scheduled to be heard on the House floor, but efforts are underway to either amend or defeat it. Rep. Jeff Steinborn, D-Las Cruces, said Thursday.

"There are discussions happening right now on this very subject, so we're working to do what we can," Steinborn said.

In 2007, voters in Doña Ana and Sierra counties approved a temporary increase in their gross receipts tax to support Spaceport America, which at that time was still on the drawing board. In an effort to increase support for the bill, it was determined that 75 percent of the revenue would go to the spaceport, and 25 percent would go to local school districts for STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) programs.

During a meeting of the New Mexico Finance Authority in November 2013, concerns were raised that the portion of the spaceport tax going to school could be a violation of the equalization funding formula for education. If the courts find that the state has violated that formula, it risks losing $52.7 million in federal impact aid revenue, according to the fiscal impact report prepared for this legislation.

Advertisement

None of those concerns were raised when the tax hike was being pitched to local voters by state officials, including then-Gov. Bill Richardson.

"The STEM was my idea," said Rep. Bill McCamley, D-Las Cruces, who was a member of the County Commission at the time the tax bill was passed, and joined Steinborn in arguing against the Stepleton bill in committee. "There has never been a red flag raised until fall of last year."

If HB 13 is passed, it will likely mean the County Commission will simply divert those funds to other uses, rather than turn the money over to the state, McCamley said.

"If this bill is passed without exemptions, the only people who will get hurt are the kids," McCamley said. "The county will come up with something else for that money."

The frustrating part is that the tax is working, McCamley said. Participation in upper-level science and math programs has doubled in Las Cruces schools, and Hatch recently placed 14th at a prestigious national science competition in Dallas, he said.

Steinborn said one of the amendments they are pushing for is an exemption for Doña Ana and Sierra counties. That would prevent other counties from passing taxes to support their schools in violation of the equalization formula, but would respect the intent of local voters, he said. State official are unsure if there are any other such taxes for schools in any other counties, according to the report on the bill.

The tax is not in violation of the funding formula because the funding provided to schools is in the form of a grant that will eventually sunset, he said.

If the bill passes in the House, it would move to the Senate, where the committee process would start all over again. If it passes there, Gov. Susana Martinez could still block it with a veto.

"There are still lots of hurdles and a lot of us fighting it," McCamley said.